33.
Everything Happens by Itself
Questioner:
Does a jnani die?
Nisargadatta:
He is beyond life and death. What we take to be inevitable -- to be
born and to die --
appears
to him but a way of expressing movement in the Immovable, change in
the changeless,
end
in the endless. To the jnani it is obvious that nothing is born and
nothing dies, nothing lasts and
nothing
changes, all is as it is -- timelessly.
Questioner:
You say the jnani is beyond. Beyond what? Beyond knowledge?
Nisargadatta:
Knowledge has its rising and setting. Consciousness comes into being
and goes out of being. It
is
a matter of daily occurrence and observation. We all know that
sometimes we are conscious and
sometimes
not. When we are not conscious, it appears to us as a darkness or a
blank. But a
jnani
is aware of himself as neither conscious nor unconscious, but purely
aware, a witness to the three
states
of the mind and their contents.
Questioner:
When does this witnessing begin?
Nisargadatta:
To a jnani nothing has beginning or ending. As salt dissolves in
water, so does everything
dissolve
into pure being. Wisdom is eternally negating the unreal. To see the
unreal is wisdom.
Beyond
this lies the inexpressible.
Questioner:
There is in me the conviction: 'I am the body' Granted, I am talking
from unwisdom. But the
state
of feeling oneself the body, the body-mind, the mind-body, or even
pure mind -- when did it
begin?
Nisargadatta:
You cannot speak of a beginning of consciousness. The very ideas of
beginning and time are
within
consciousness. To talk meaningfully of the beginning of anything,
you must step out of it. And
the
moment you step out, you realise that there is no such thing and
never was. There is only
reality,
in which no ‘thing' has any being on its own. Like waves are
inseparable from the ocean, so
is
all existence rooted in being.
Questioner:
The fact is that here and now I am asking you: when did the feeling
'I am the body' arise? At my
birth?
or this morning?
Nisargadatta:
Now.
Questioner:
But I remember having it yesterday too!
Nisargadatta:
The memory of yesterday is now only.
Questioner:
But surely I exist in time. I have a past and a future.
Nisargadatta:
That is how you imagine -- now.
Questioner:
There must have been a beginning.
Nisargadatta:
Now.
Questioner:
And what about ending?
Nisargadatta:
What has no beginning cannot end.
Questioner:
But I am conscious of my question.
Nisargadatta:
A false question cannot be answered. It can only be seen as false.
Questioner:
To me it is real.
Nisargadatta:
When did it appear real to you? Now.
Questioner:
Yes, it is quite real to me -- now.
Nisargadatta:
What is real about your question? It is a state of mind. No state of
mind can be more real than
the
mind itself. Is the mind real? It is but a collection of states,
each of them transitory. How can a
succession
of transitory states be considered real?
Questioner:
Like beads on a string, events follow events -- for ever.
Nisargadatta:
They are all strung on the basic idea: 'I am the body'. But even
this is a mental state and does
not
last. It comes and goes like all other states. The illusion of being
the body-mind is there, only
because
it is not investigated. Non-investigation is the thread on which all
the states of mind are
strung.
It is like darkness in a closed room. It is there -- apparently. But
when the room is opened,
where
does it go? It goes nowhere, because it was not there. All states of
mind, all names and
forms
of existence are rooted in non-enquiry, non-investigation, in
imagination and credulity. It is
right
to say 'I am', but to say 'I am this', 'I am that' is a sign of not
enquiring, not examining, of
mental
weakness or lethargy.
Questioner:
If all is light, how did darkness arise? How can there be darkness
in the midst of light?
Nisargadatta:
There is no darkness in the midst of light. Self-forgetfulness is
the darkness. When we are
absorbed
in other things, in the not-self, we forget the self. There is
nothing unnatural about it. But,
why
forget the self through excess of attachment? Wisdom lies in never
forgetting the self as the
ever-present
source of both the experiencer and his experience.
Questioner:
In my present state the 'I am the body' idea comes spontaneously,
while the 'I am pure being'
idea
must be imposed on the mind as something true but not experienced.
Nisargadatta:
Yes, sadhana (practice) consists in reminding oneself forcibly of
one's pure 'being-ness', of not
being
anything in particular, nor a sum of particulars, not even the
totality of all particulars, which
make
up a universe. All exists in the mind, even the body is an
integration in the mind of a vast
number
of sensory perceptions, each perception also a mental state. If you
say: 'I am the body',
show
it.
Questioner:
Here it is.
Nisargadatta:
Only when you think of it. Both mind and body are intermittent
states. The sum total of these
flashes
creates the illusion of existence. Enquire what is permanent in the
transient, real in the
unreal.
This is sadhana.
Questioner:
The fact is that I am thinking of myself as the body.
Nisargadatta:
Think of yourself by all means. Only don't bring the idea of a body
into the picture. There is only
a
stream of sensations, perceptions, memories and ideations. The body
is an abstraction, created
by
our tendency to seek unity in diversity -- which again is not wrong.
Questioner:
I am being told that to think 'I am the body' is a blemish in the
mind.
Nisargadatta:
Why talk like this? Such expressions create problems. The self is
the source of all, and of all --
the
final destination. Nothing is external.
Questioner:
When the body idea becomes obsessive, is it not altogether wrong?
Nisargadatta:
There is nothing wrong in the idea of a body, nor even in the idea
'I am the body'. But limiting
oneself
to one body only is a mistake. In reality all existence, every form,
is my own, within my
consciousness.
I cannot tell what I am because words can describe only what I am
not. I am, and
because
I am, all is. But I am beyond consciousness and, therefore, in
consciousness I cannot say
what
I am. Yet, I am. The question 'Who am I' has no answer. No
experience can answer it, for the
self
is beyond experience.
Questioner:
Still, the question 'Who am I' must be of some use.
Nisargadatta:
It has no answer in consciousness and, therefore, helps to go beyond
consciousness.
Questioner:
Here I am -- in the present moment. What is real in it, and what is
not? Now, please don't tell
me
that my question is wrong. Questioning my questions leads me
nowhere.
Nisargadatta:
Your question is not wrong. It is unnecessary. You said: 'Here and
now I am'. Stop there, this is
real.
Don't turn a fact into a question. There lies your mistake. You are
neither knowing nor not-
knowing,
neither mind nor matter; don't attempt to describe yourself in terms
of mind and matter.
Questioner:
Just now a boy came to you with a problem. You told him a few words
and he went away. Did
you
help him?
Nisargadatta:
Of course.
Questioner:
Wow can you be so sure?
Nisargadatta:
To help is my nature.
Questioner:
How did you come to know It?
Nisargadatta:
No need to know. It operates by itself.
Questioner:
Still you have made a statement. On what is it based?
Nisargadatta:
On what people tell me. But it is you who asks for proofs. I do not
need them. Setting things
right
lies in my very nature, which is satyam, shivam, sundaram (the true,
the good, the beautiful).
Questioner:
When a man comes to you for advice and you give him advice,
wherefrom does it come and by
what
power does it help?
Nisargadatta:
His own being affects his mind and induces a response.
Questioner:
And what is your role?
Nisargadatta:
In me the man and his self come together.
Questioner:
Why does not the self help the man without you?
Nisargadatta:
But I am the self! You imagine me as separate, hence your question.
There is no 'my self' and
'his
self'. There is the Self, the only Self of all. Misled by the
diversity of names and shapes, minds
and
bodies, you imagine multiple selves. We both are the self, but you
seem to be unconvinced.
This talk of personal self and universal self is the learner's
stage; go beyond, don't be stuck in duality.
Questioner:
Let us come back to the man in need of help. He comes to you.
Nisargadatta:
If he comes, he is sure to get help. Because he was destined to get
help, he came. There is
nothing
fanciful about it. I cannot help some and refuse others. All who
come are helped, for such is
the
law. Only the shape help takes varies according to the need.
Questioner:
Why must he come here to get advice? Can't he get it from within?
Nisargadatta:
He will not listen. His mind is turned outward. But in fact all
experience is in the mind, and even
his
coming to me and getting help is all within himself. Instead of
finding an answer within himself,
he
imagines an answer from without. To me there is no me, no man and no
giving. All this is merely
a
flicker in the mind. I am infinite peace and silence in which
nothing appears, for all that appears --
disappears.
Nobody comes for help, nobody offers help, nobody gets help. It is
all but a display in
consciousness.
Questioner:
Yet the power to help is there and there is somebody or something
that displays that power,
call
it God or Self or the Universal Mind. The name does not matter, but
the fact does.
Nisargadatta:
This is the stand the body-mind takes. The pure mind sees things as
they are -- bubbles in
consciousness.
These bubbles are appearing, disappearing and reappearing -- without
having real
being.
No particular cause can be ascribed to them, for each is caused by
all and affects all. Each
bubble
is a body and all these bodies are mine.
Questioner:
Do you mean to say, that you have the power to do everything
rightly?
Nisargadatta:
There is no power as separate from me. It is inherent in my very
nature. Call it creativity. Out of
a
lump of gold you can make many ornaments -- each will remain gold.
Similarly, in whatever role I
may
appear and whatever function I may perform -- I remain what I
aNisargadatta: the 'I am' immovable,
unshakable,
independent. What you call the universe, nature, is my spontaneous
creativity.
Whatever
happens -- happens. But such is my nature that all ends in joy.
Questioner:
I have a case of a boy gone blind because his stupid mother fed him
methyl alcohol. I am
requesting
you to help him. You are full of compassion and, obviously, eager to
help. By what
power
can you help him?
Nisargadatta:
His case is registered in consciousness. It is there -- indelibly.
Consciousness will operate.
Questioner:
Does it make any difference that I ask you to help?
Nisargadatta:
Your asking is a part of the boy's blindness. Because he is blind,
you ask. You have added
nothing.
Questioner:
But your help will be a new factor?
Nisargadatta:
No, all is contained in the boy's blindness. All is in it -- the
mother, the boy, you and me and all
else.
It is one event.
Questioner:
You mean to say that even our discussing the boy's case was
predestined?
Nisargadatta:
How else? All things contain their future. The boy appears in
consciousness. I am beyond. I do
not
issue orders to consciousness. I know that it is in the nature of
awareness to set things right. Let
consciousness
look after its creations! The boy's sorrow, your pity, my listening
and consciousness
acting
-- all this is one single fact -- don't split it into components and
then ask questions.
Questioner:
How strangely does your mind work?
Nisargadatta:
You are strange, not me. I am normal. I am sane. I see things as
they are, and therefore l am
not
afraid of them. But you are afraid of reality.
Questioner:
Why should l?
Nisargadatta:
It is ignorance of yourself that makes you afraid and also unaware
that you are afraid. Don't try
not
to be afraid. Break down the wall of ignorance first.
People
are afraid to die, because they do not know what is death. The jnani
has died before his
death,
he saw that there was nothing to be afraid of. The moment you know
your real being, you are
afraid
of nothing. Death gives freedom and power. To be free in the world,
you must die to the
world.
Then the universe is your own, it becomes your body, an expression
and a tool. The
happiness
of being absolutely free is beyond description. On the other hand,
he who is afraid of
freedom
cannot die.
Questioner:
You mean that one who cannot die, cannot live?
Nisargadatta:
Put it as you like; attachment is bondage, detachment is freedom. To
crave is to slave.
Questioner:
Does it follow that if you are saved, the world is saved?
Nisargadatta:
As a whole the world does not need saving. Man makes mistakes and
creates sorrow; when it
enters
the field of awareness, the consciousness of a jnani, it is set
right. Such is his nature.
Questioner:
We can observe what may be called spiritual progress. A selfish man
turns religious, controls
himself,
refines his thoughts and feelings, takes to spiritual practice,
realises his true being. Is such
progress
ruled by causality, or is it accidental?
Nisargadatta:
From my point of view everything happens by itself, quite
spontaneously. But man imagines that
he
works for an incentive, towards a goal. He has always a reward in
mind and strives for it.
Questioner:
A crude, unevolved man will not work without a reward. Is it not
right to offer him incentives?
Nisargadatta:
He will create for himself incentives anyhow. He does not know that
to grow is in the nature of
consciousness.
He will progress from motive to motive and will chase Gurus for the
fulfilment of his
desires.
When by the laws of his being he finds the way of return (nivritti)
he abandons all motives,
for
his interest in the world is over. He wants nothing -- neither from
others nor from himself. He dies
to
all and becomes the All. To want nothing and do nothing -- that is
true creation! To watch the
universe
emerging and subsiding in one's heart is a wonder.
Questioner:
The great obstacle to inner effort is boredom. The disciple gets
bored.
Nisargadatta:
Inertia and restlessness (tamas and rajas) work together and keep
clarity and harmony (sattva) down.
Tamas
and Rajas must be conquered before Sattva can appear. It will all
come in due course,
quite
spontaneously.
Questioner:
Is there no need of effort then?
Nisargadatta:
When effort is needed, effort will appear. When effortlessness
becomes essential, it will assert
itself.
You need not push life about. Just flow with it and give yourself
completely to the task of the
present
moment, which is the dying now to the now. For living is dying.
Without death life cannot be.
Get
hold of the main thing that the world and the self are one and
perfect. Only your attitude is faulty
and
needs readjustment.
This
process or readjustment is what you call sadhana. You come to it by
putting an end to
indolence
and using all your energy to clear the way for clarity and charity.
But in reality, these all
are
signs of inevitable growth. Don't be afraid, don't resist, don't
delay. Be what you are. There is
nothing
to be afraid of. Trust and try. Experiment honestly. Give your real
being a chance to shape
your
life. You will not regret.